News

WHITEHORSE—The Department of Education is pleased to announce an investment of $150,000 in the Water and Wastewater Operator program at Yukon College, an important step in implementing the new Yukon Water Strategy and Action Plan.

“Maintaining and improving access to safe drinking water is a priority for the Yukon government and is of critical importance to Yukon communities,” Minister of Education Elaine Taylor said This is being accomplished through both training and continued investments in water and waste water infrastructure.”

The water industry is a rapidly changing and growing career area in Yukon. The Water and Wastewater Operator program provides a range of courses to train students who are seeking a career in the water industry and to enable experienced industry workers to maintain certification, expand skills and keep up with changing technology.

Whitehorse - Carving our Path, an exhibit by young First Nations artists from the Northern Cultural Expressions Society (NCES) will open Thursday, January 15 in the Hilltop Bistro at Yukon College. The opening is from 4.00 p.m. until 6.00 p.m. with artists in attendance.

The exhibit is a mix of prints, masks, paddles, plaques and panel carvings in the Tlingit and Southern Tutchone traditions. The pieces range in complexity from both beginner and advanced carvers.

“All of the carvers, from the young beginners to our advanced instructors, have chosen pieces that reflect their personal growth as carvers and artists dedicated to First Nations traditions for this show,“ says Colin Teramura, Carving and Education Programs Supervisor with NCES. “They were all eager to participate in a show promoting their contemporary variations of First Nations cultural traditions.”

WHITEHORSE—As part of its commitment to build an inclusive, adaptable and productive workforce, the Yukon government is pleased to announce $850,000 in funding for the Targeted Initiative for Older Workers for the next three years.

“This initiative enables older workers to enter or re-enter the workforce by helping them determine what type of work suits their needs and providing the necessary training,” Minister of Education Elaine Taylor said. “The participants gain employment skills and confidence, and the labour market gains skilled workers.”

The Targeted Initiative for Older Workers program, offered twice a year by Yukon College, helps participants secure employment through skill development and a four-week work placement.

WHITEHORSE – Registration has opened for the 2015 All-Girls Science Club for students in grades 5-7. Beginning January 31st eight sessions will run on Saturday mornings at Yukon College’s Ayamdigut campus until May.

This year’s theme is the Science of Transportation. The club offers plenty of hands-on science activities relating to real-world transportation issues such as city planning, sustainable transportation technology, kinematics, design, construction and the unique aspects of transportation in the north. The sessions will also feature guest mentors who will lead activities and speak about their careers in science.

“This program helps girls to feel more capable and welcome in the world of science,” said coordinator Lori LaRochelle, Science Adventures at Yukon College.

WHITEHORSE – Starting in January a new Skills for Employment in Culinary Arts program will provide an opportunity for up to 12 students to learn and develop skills and knowledge in a hands-on environment that will help them succeed in a professional kitchen.

The 15 credit program runs from January 5 to March 31 and will cover the basics of meal planning, menu design, nutrition, budgeting, ordering supplies, preparation and presentation, as well as Food Safe, First Aid, and WHMIS certifications. Life and employment skills training throughout the program will leave graduates ready to apply for entry-level kitchen jobs, consider applying to the College’s Culinary Arts certificate program, or simply prepare healthier, more nutritious meals for their family.

Instructors in the program will be Red Seal Chefs Joe Siefert and Lynn Fabio. 

For more information please call First Nations Initiatives at 668-8795 or email fniadmin@yukoncollege.yk.ca.

The federal government’s Residential School Education Credit program, which began in Spring 2014, came with an Oct 31, 2014 application deadline, and a Dec 1, 2014 deadline for invoicing by institutions.

Yukon College has now received official notice that the program has been given an interim court-ordered extension. This means that Yukon College will once again accept and process new redemption forms.

Please bring your forms and photo ID to Ayamdigut campus as soon as possible. Please call us at the number above if you have ANY questions or require help with the application process.

Whitehorse - The Yukon/Stikine Regional Science Fair competition takes place at Yukon College on Saturday, December 6, 2014

68 projects from Grades 4-12 have been selected from school fairs held in the past month to compete at the regional level. Seven schools are competing: Jack Hulland, Teslin Community School, Vanier Catholic Secondary, Whitehorse Elementary, Holy Family, and Hidden Valley. The Yukon Home Educators are also participating.

Select Grades 7-12 winners of the Science Fair will have an opportunity to compete in the Canada-Wide Science Fair in May 2015, to be held in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Last year the Yukon/Stikine Regional Science Fair sent three finalists, Sophia Ross, Isabel Magsucang, and KC Mooney to the national fair in Windsor, Ontario.

Whitehorse - The Yukon/Stikine Regional Science Fair competition takes place at Yukon College on Saturday, December 6, 2014

68 projects from Grades 4-12 have been selected from school fairs held in the past month to compete at the regional level. Seven schools are competing: Jack Hulland, Teslin Community School, Vanier Catholic Secondary, Whitehorse Elementary, Holy Family, and Hidden Valley. The Yukon Home Educators are also participating.

Select Grades 7-12 winners of the Science Fair will have an opportunity to compete in the Canada-Wide Science Fair in May 2015, to be held in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Last year the Yukon/Stikine Regional Science Fair sent three finalists, Sophia Ross, Isabel Magsucang, and KC Mooney to the national fair in Windsor, Ontario.

Whitehorse, Yukon – At a ceremony in Ottawa today, Yukon College was one of the first Colleges in Canada to sign an historic Indigenous Education Protocol presented by Colleges and Institutes Canada’s (CICan). This aspirational document reaffirms the colleges’ commitment to Indigenous education and provides a vision of how it will strive to improve and better serve Indigenous peoples.

Co-Chair of Yukon College’s President’s Advisory Council on First Nations Initiatives and Gwitchin elder Annie Bernard, is in Ottawa along with Yukon College president Dr. Karen Barnes, and the College’s Director of First Nations Initiatives Tosh Southwick, to sign the protocol and bring it back to Yukon.

WHITEHORSE – Trays of colourful butterflies and other insects, bird specimens, and pressed dried plants, have found a home at the Yukon Research Centre (YRC) at Yukon College. These collections will be curated and made available to the public for research and education purposes thanks to the support of EDI Environmental Dynamics Inc. (EDI), Environment Canada, and Government of Yukon.

The importance of Yukon natural history collections was brought to the attention of the College through a 2004 research needs assessment survey initiated by Yukon College.

Whitehorse – Yukon College has announced the top three submissions to the Design Your Campus ideas competition for how best to use the 97 hectare land reserve around Ayamdigut campus. The winning ideas included greenhouse corridors to connect buildings submitted by Dawne Mitchell, a sacred space on campus submitted by Tosh Southwick, and an outdoor nature centre open to students and the public submitted by Dorothy Bradley.

The top three will be displayed alongside all submissions at the Land Use Plan “Big Ideas” open house taking place Tuesday November 25, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Kinnikinnick Kaff at Yukon College’s Ayamdigut campus. Mitchell, Southwick and Bradley will receive gift certificates to Staples, Coast Mountain Sports, and Canadian Tire valued at $300, $200 and $100 respectively.

WHITEHORSE - At 10 p.m., when many people in Yukon are getting ready for bed, Yukon College instructor Everett Igobwa, is getting ready to teach a music class in his apartment in downtown Whitehorse. He does not need to worry about waking up neighbours because his students are 13,370 kilometres away, in Nairobi, Kenya, where it is 9 a.m. the next morning.

Igobwa uses web conferencing software to direct the combined Nairobi School (NS) and Precious Blood Secondary (PBS) orchestra via blended learning, and surprisingly the distance between teacher and his students is not the most challenging aspect of this endeavour.